Soil testing apparatus



therewith to fill substantially. all the grooves with sections forproper cutting conditions.

With the close positioning of the rolls and relative speedsaforedescribed, it is readily seen that, regardless of the volume of themass of these sections on top of the lower roll, only one layer ofsections and those in proper cutting guidance can pass through thecutting zone; Each section is thereby subjected individually to cuttingwith controlled depth, directional force, and spacing of cut, to ruptureit along planes at right angles to its axis, and is limited to only onesuch contact, and is thereupon discharged from the cutting zone. Theinner sides of the cutting edges acting upon the cylindrical sectionscontinues to guide each broken portion individually after its ruptureuntil it has passed through the cutting zone.

The sectional contour of the grooves preferably describes the chord of acircle slightly larger than the crosssection of the cylindrical body tobe cut. The cylindrical body lying in the groove of this section restsin the center of the chord form trough, hence projects above the uppersurface a minimum distance. When the body so carried in the groove firstcontacts the cutting edges of the upper roll, it is rolled backwardalong the curved surface of the groove, thereby being projected furtherinto the cutting zone, hence is subjected to gradiently increasing butlimited depth of cut as it passes into the full cutting zone.

While I have shown'my invention in but one form, it will be obvious tothose skilled in the artthat it is not so limited, but is susceptible ofvarious changes and modifications without departing from the spiritthereof, and I desire, therefore, that only such limitations shall beplaced thereupon as are imposed by the prior art or as are specificallyset forth in the appended claims.'

What I claim is:

i 1. In apparatus of the character described, a pair of cooperatingbreaker rolls, one of said rolls having transverse grooves in the outerperiphery thereof and the other having longitudinal grooves in the outerperiphery thereof, and means to drive both rolls in the same angulardirection, with the periphery of the transversely grooved rollmovmg in adirection 'to oppose the entrance of material betwe'en the rolls.

2. In a breaker apparatus, an upper breaker roll having'uniformly spacedtransverse peripheral grooves, a lower breaker roll having, uniformlyspaced longitudinal peripheral grooves,-

and means to drive the rolls in the same angular direction, with theperiphery of the upper roll moving in a direction to oppose the entranceof material between the rolls. ;3. In a breaker apparatus, an upperbreaker roll having uniformly spaced transverse peripheral grooves, alower breaker roll having uniformly spaced longitudinal peripheralgrooves, and means to drive the rolls in the same angular directionandfat different speeds with the upper roll driven at a higher rate ofperipheral speed than .the lower.

4. In apparatus for breaking elongated fragile bodies, a lower breakerroll having uniformly spaced longitudinal grooves in the periphery todrive the lower roll at a lesser speedthan the upper roll in a directionto draw material between the rolls. I

5. In apparatus for breaking elongated fragile bodies, a lowercylindrical breaker roll having uniformly spaced longitudinallyextending grooves separated by relatively sharp ridges on the peripherythereof, an upper cooperating cylindrical breaker roll having similartransversely extending grooves and ridges on its periphery and disposedtovthe rear of a vertical plane \passing through the axis of the lowerroll, means for feeding .material on to the upper side of the lowerroll, means for driving the lower roll in a direction to convey materialbetween the rolls, and means for driving the upper roll in a directionto repel material entering between the rolls and at a velocitysubstantially in excess of that of the lower roll.

,6. In apparatus for breaking elongated fragile bodies, a lowercylindrical breaker roll having uniformly spaced longitudinallyextending grooves separated by relatively sharp ridges on the peripherythereof, an upper cooperating cylindrical breaker roll having similartransversely extending grooves and ridges on itperiphery and disposed tothe rear of a vertical plane passing through the axis of the lower rollso that a plane joining the axes of the two rolls is at an angle ofapproximately 45 to the first mentioned plane, means for feedingmaterial onto the upper side of the lower roll, means for driving thelower roll in a direction to carry the material between the rolls, andmeans for driving the upper roll in a direction to repel the materialentering between the rolls and at an angular veis at an angle ofapproximately 45 to the horizontal, the upper roll being disposed to therear of the lower roll and spaced therefrom so that the ridges on eitherof the rolls is adapted to cut into an elongated body in a cooperatinggroove of the other roll, means to feed material onto the upper side ofthe lower roll, means to drive the lower roll in a direction to draw maf'1. Apparatus for breaking elongated dried exterial to be broken betweenthe rolls, and means to drive the upper roll in a direction to repelmaterial entering between the rolls and at a higherperipheral speed thanthe lower-roll.

8. Apparatus for breaking elongated dried extruded salt bodies intouniform lengths comprising cooperating lower'and upper breaker rollsprovided with ormly spaced longitudinal and transverse groovesrespectively, said grooves being divided byrelatively sharp ridges andbeing of a depth slightly less than the diameters of said bodies to bebroken, said rolls being disposed so that a plane joining theirrespective centersis at an angle of approximately 45 to the hori--zontal, the upper roll being disposed to the rear of the lower roll andspaced therefrom so that the ridges on either of the rolls is adapted toout into an elongated body in a cooperating groove of the other roll;means to feed material onto the upper side of the lower roll, means toMarch 5, 1935. R. v. LABARRE SOIL TESTING APPARATQS Filed Feb. 29, 19324 Sheets-Sheet 1 f/vw /v ma. Eabe f MA .2 b arre 5 ,4 Tree/vex March 5,1935. R v LABARRE 1,993,103

SOIL TESTING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 29, 1952 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 6&6 L04077/01/84/1/05 OFPOU/VOS P52 $QUAR F007 1688833404448526606468?'I'IHEHNN-IBUQDQS A f roe/v5 Y.

Patented Mar. 5, 1935 PATENT OFFICE SOIL TESTING APPARATUS Robert V.Laban-e, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application February 29, 1932, Serial No. 595,846

8 Claims.

My invention relates to the art of testing soils for the purpose ofdetermining the physical characteristics thereof, and relatesparticularly to a testing device by which pressure may be applied tosoil or earth formations and the action of the soil thereunderscientifically and accurately determined. My invention is of particularutility in the testing of soils preparatory to the construction ofbuildings or other structures where it is desired to obtain the safebearing value of the soil and to determine the action of the soil underpressure. By use of my invention very accurate data may be obtained asto the deformation or movement of the soil when pressures are appliedthereto and also as to the settling of the soil over extended periods oftime. The necessity for determining the foundation value of soils onwhich structures are to be erected has long been recognized, andengineers have made tests by use of crude methods and crude equipment.One method employed has been to bore a hole in the ground, place a shoeor plate in the bottom thereof, stand a post or pile on the plate, erecta flat table at the upper end of the post and then place weight members,such as sacks filled with sand or earth, on this platform. By measuringthe downward movement of the post member, the action of the soilformation under the weight applied is determined with more or lessaccuracy, depending upon the skill of the tester and the accuracy of theequipment employed. Another equipment which has been extensively usedemploys a vertical post with a shoe on the bottom thereof for placing ina test hole, and a fulcrumed lever arm on the end of which weights arehung. In the use of both the foregoing devices accurate results arenever assured, and the results are therefore considered as onlyapproximations of the soil conditions.

My invention comprehends a device which may be readily transported andby which accurate readings of both the pressure applied to the soil andthe deformation of the soil under pressure may be obtained. My newtesting device includes a weight member consisting of a demountablestructure having platforms on which weights may be placed so as to buildup the weight of the weight member to a desired point. In substantiallythe center of the weight member is an abutment which receives the upperend of a force exerting device, and to the lower end of the forceexerting device a pressure foot or shoe is secured. Means for operatingthe force exerting device are supplied in the form of an air or gasreservoir which is so connected to the cylinder-piston of the forceexerting device that the pressure within the pressure cylinder of theforce exerting device may be varied in accordance with a preconceivedplan. By the use of this equipment the force or weight applied to thepressure shoe may be gradually increased over a period of time or may beincreased at predetermined intervals, and the corresponding pressuresand soil deformation may be obtained directly from automatic registeringdevices forming part of the equipment.

It is an object of my invention to provide a soil testing device ofsimple and demountable construction enabling it to be knocked down andtransported on a relatively small truck to any desired point ofoperation.

A further object of the invention is to provide a soil testing device ofthis character having weight receiving or weight holding portionsdisposed on opposite sides of a central chamber in which the forceexerting equipment and the recording equipment are placed.

It is an object of the invention to provide in combination with apressure shoe means for exerting a force against said pressure shoe,together with means for recording the movement of said pressure shoe andthe corresponding pressure required to accomplish movement of thepressure shoe.

It is a further object of the invention to incorporate a device forautomatically varying the pressure exerted against the pressure shoeover a prescribed period of time, thereby making it possible to set upthe testing device, initiate the operation of the mechanism, and toleave the device without attendance until the expiration of the periodof time over which the test is to be conducted. The only labor requiredin the operation of the device is the setting up of the machine at thestart of the test and then the dismantling of the machine after the testhas been made. No expense for labor during the test is required, thisbeing a very pronounced savingover old methods of soil testing.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be made evidentthroughout the following part of the specification.

Referring to the drawings, which are for illustrative purposes only,

Fig. 1 is a. front elevation of a preferred embodiment of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary cross section taken substantially as indicatedby the line 3-3 of Fig. 4 is a cross section on a plane represented bythe line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Fig.5 is an enlarged sectional detail showing the automatic controllingdevice which I prefer to use in the practice of my invention.

Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic ie w showing an alternative form of automaticcontrolling device.

Fig. 7 is an illustration of a chart or record of a test made by use ofmy invention.

Fig. 8 is an enlafi sectional detail showing the fluid pressure resposive device of my inventlon.

As best shown in Figs. 1 to 4, my invention includes a demountableweight member or weight structure 11 consisting of stringers 12 held inspaced relationship by end horizontal frames 13 and vertical frames 14.The stringers 12 rest 6 upon boards 19 and each consists of a pair ofstructural channels 15 which are spaced apart such distance that theends of outer and inner tension bars or struts 16 and 17 may be insertedtherebetween and secured thereto by removable pins 18 and 20. Thevertical frames 14 are substantially square in form and include, asshown in- Fig. 4, side posts 21, top and bottom members 22 and 23, andcross braces 24. These vertical frames 14 are spaced in parallelvertical planes on opposite sides of the center line of the structure 11so as to define in the center of the structure 11 a central space orchamber. 25. The frames 14 rest across the stringers 12, and resting onand connecting the upper ends of the frames are girders 26, which, likethe stringers 12, are made from structural channels 27 spaced apart sothat the upper ends 28 of the tension members 16 may be received betweenthe ends of the cooperating pairs of channels 27, and the upper ends 29of the tension members 17 may extend between the central parts of thecooperating pairs of channels 27. The ends 28 of the tension members 16are secured to the girders 26 by removable pins 31, and the upper ends29 of the tension members 17 are secured to these girders 26 by pins 32.The structure 11, due to the assembly of parts shown, has the form of aninverted truss.

Extending across the upper portion of the space 25 from the center ofone girder 26 to the center of the other girder 26 is a thrust orabutment member 33 fabricated in girder form from steel structuralmembers, and on the'lower face of the member 33, in substantially itscenter, is a thrust fitting 34 having a downwardly projecting ball 35which engages a depression or socket 36 in the upper end of a cylinder37 forming part of a force exerting means 38 which constitutes aprincipal part of my invention. Projecting into the lower open end ofthe cylinder 37 is a piston 40 having a sealing member 41 secured to itsupper end and having a thrust member or post 42 extending downwardlyfrom its lower end, this thrust member 42 being a replaceable elementand being secured to the piston 40 by screws 43. Immediately below thethrust member 42 is a pressure shoe 44 of desired diameter, andextending between the pressure shoe 44 is an adjustable member'or jack45 consisting of a head 46, a screw 47, and a foot 48.

In assembly of my testing device the weight member is first erected, andthe weight thereof is built up by placing boxes or containers 51 on theprojecting ends of the stringers 12 so as to provide supporting means onthe opposite ends of the weight member or structure 11, in which anyrelatively heavy material may be placed. For filling the boxes 51 Iordinarily employ earth, sand, or other material which is found at hand.It is to be understood that the boxes 51 are not entirely necessary butare employed for a matter of convenience, as it is possible to merelyplace boards 52 across the ends 50 of the stringers 12 and to pilesand-filled bags 53 thereon, as shown in Fig. 1. The pressure shoe 44may then be placed on the ground 54, and the force exerting device 38,which may be considered as including theparts 37, 40, 42, and 45, isthen placed on the shoe 44 with the socket 36 in engagement with theball 35 of the thrust or abutment member 33. The jack 45 is readilyadjustable to give the force exerting means 38 the desired lengthcorresponding to the distance from the surface of the ground 54 to theball 35. The weight of the weight member is then increased by thefilling of the boxes 51 or the placing of sand bags 53 to a value inexcess of the weight or force to'be exerted against the shoe 44. On across member 55 extending from one stringer 12 to the other across thelower portion of the central space 25, and in a position to one side ofthe jack 45, an indicating device 56 is supported by means of a post 57.This indicating device includes a rotatable drum 58 adapted to berotated at constant speed by clock or timing mechanism located withinthe drum 58, and on this drum 58 a recording chart 60 is secured.Extending leftwardly or inwardly from the upper end of the post 57 is abracket 61 to which a deflection indicating arm 62 is pivoted at 63. Thedeflection indicating arm is slotted at its leftward end 64 to engage apin or projection 65 mounted on the post 42, and the rightward end ofthe arm 62 is equipped with stylus means 66 for producing a mark on thechart 60. The indicating arm- 62 is so proportioned that the movement ofthe projection 65 will be properly indicated on the chart 60. Extendingrightwardly from the upper end of the post 57 is a bracket 67 whichsupports a. fluid pressure responsive device 68 having a pressureindicating arm 69 equipped with a stylus means 70 for recording on theupper portion of the chart 60 carried by the recording device 56. Withinthe fiuid pressure responsive device 68 is mounted a. piston 71 havingconnected to its lower surface a crank arm 72, which at its free end isconnected to the inner end of the indicating arm 69. A spring 73normally exerts its force of expansion upwardly against the piston 71.Fluid pressure for operating the device 68 is supplied through a pipe 74which extends from piping 75 which connects with the pressure chamber ofthe cylinder 37 through an elbow 76 and a fitting carrying a pressuregauge 76'. Fluid under pressure entering the fluid pressure responsivedevice 68 through pipe 74 actuates the piston 71, crank arm 72, and theindicating arm 69 carrying the stylus 70, so that pressures are recordedon the chart 60. On the forwardly projecting end 77 of one of thesupporting boards 19 a gas container 78 is placed, and this gascontainer is connected to the piping 75 through piping 80 which containsa pressure regulator 81. The apparatus is now assembled in condition formanual operation, and a test may be conducted in the following manner.With the chart 60 placed with its starting point coincident with thestylus means 66 and 70, the recording device is put into operation bystarting the timing or clockwork mechanism thereof so as to rotate thedrum 58. The pressure regulator 81 is then manipulated to produce adesired initial pressure in the pressure chamber of the cylinder 37 sothat the the curve 93 lying on the zero ordinate.

force exerting device 38 then forces downwardly with a predeterminedpressure and through the shoe 44 exerts this pressure on a definite areaof the ground or soil. At desired intervals the pressure is increased,the record of such pressure increases being marked by the stylus meanscomplementary to the marking thereon of the downward movement of themember 42 by the stylus means 66. In this manner the pressure exerted onthe definite area of soil may be increased from minimum to maximum overa period of time, and accurate readings of pressures and deflections maybe obtained. For convenience I have shown the shoe 44 resting on thesurface of the ground 54, but in the practice of my invention the shoe44 is placed in a test hole, and a post or thrust member 42 of properlength to reach from the shoe to the piston 40 is employed. Therefore,the testing equipment includes a number of posts of'difl'erent lengthswhich may be used individually or joined together, depending upon thedepth of the testing hole in which the test of the soil is beingconducted.

In Fig. 7 I show a typical record chart such as may be obtained in theuse of my machine. This chart consists of a paper sheet having an upper,pressure recording chart or graph space 86 and a lower deflection chart87. Vertical lines 88 extending through both the upper and lower charts86 and 87 are spaced apart to represent the lapse of time, the spacingof these lines corresponding to the movement of the drum 58 by thetiming or clock mechanism employed therewith.

Horizontal lines 90 in the upper chart 86, numbered from 1 to 10,represent pressure exerted on the pressure foot in thousands of pounds,and horizontal lines 91 in the lower chart 87 represent deflection ofthe pressure footmeasured in decimals of inches. The sheet 85 is placedon the drum 58 with the zero ordinates coinciding with the stylusmembers 66 and 70, and the pressure regulator 81 is manually operatedtoproduce desired pressure within the pressure cylinder 37.

In the test indicated by the typical chart shown in Fig. '7, thepressure at the start of the test was increased from zero to 1,000pounds per square foot on the ground, as indicated by the line or curve92, this application of a load producing a deflection or compression ofthe soil of slightly over .1 of an inch, as indicated by that portion ofThe curve 92 shows that the load on the pressure foot was increased1,000 pounds per square foot at six consecutive two-hour intervalsthereafter, thus making the load applied to the pressure foot on thetwelfth hour of the test 7,000 pounds per square foot. Following thecurve from the ordi-' nate 12, it will be found that the pressure of7,000 pounds per square foot was maintained until the beginning of theforty-eighth hour of the test, when the. load was increased to 8,000pounds per square foot. At the end of the seventy-first hour of thetest, or the beginning of the seventysecond hour, the curve 92 showsthat the pressure was entirely removed from the pressure foot. The curve93 readily shows the movement of the soil, or deflection, under thevarious loads exerted thereon. For instance, during the application ofthe first 6,000 pounds of the load the rate of deflection is fairlyconstant, but when the load was increased from 6,000 to 7,000 pounds persquare foot, an increase in deflection occurred from .55 inch to .85inch, this showing that a critical point in the bearing value of thesoil was reached at 7,000 pounds per square foot pressure.

Also, the increase of the load from 7,000 to 8,000 pounds per squarefoot produced a relatively large deflection. moved at the beginning ofthe seventy-second hour, the soil showed a rebound or resilience from1.5 inches to 1.3 inches, or an equivalent of .2 inch. From the datagiven on this chart it is a simple matter of application of engineeringdata and computation to determine'the practical and safe loadingcharacteristics of the soil tested.

In the simple form of the invention shown in Fig. 1 I have provided amanually operated means for increasing the load applied, but it is to beunderstood that my invention includes. automatic means for'increasingthe load applied over a To obtain the chart prescribed period of time.shown in Fig. 7, the presence of an operator was required each time thepressure was increased. My preferred form of the invention, havingautomatic means for increasing the pressure, makes it possible toinstall the testing equipment, set same in operation, and then leave theequipment without attendance during the time over which When thepressure was rethe test is to be conducted. In Fig. 5 I show my improvedautomatic pressure regulator adapted to gradually increase the airpressure in the cylinder 37 between minimum and maximum limits over aprescribed period of time. This automatic equipment includes a fluidoperated pressure regulator and an auxiliary pressure regulator 101connected thereto. in such a manner as to gradually increase thepressure controlled by the pressure regulator 100. From the gascontainer 78 a pipe 102 is connected to the inlet chambers 103 and 104of the pressure regulating devices 100 and 101. The pressure regulator101 includes a diaphragm 105 which is connected to a valve member 106which controls a valve opening 107. A gas-tight cap 108 covers thediaphragm 105 and contains a pressure exerting means in the form of aspring 110 which spring is compressed by an adjusting screw 1.11 whichextends through -a sealed cover plate 112 and within a sylphon or othersealing means 113. It will be understood that the spring 110 may becompressed so as to cause the valve member 106 to open against a lowpressure existing in the outlet chamber 114 of the pressure regulatorand that such valve will be held open by the spring until the pressurein the outlet chamber 114 is suflicient to overcome the pressure whichthe spring 110 exerts downwardly on the diaphragm. The outlet chamber114 connects through a pipe 115 with a needle valve device 116 which isattached to an air-tight casing 117 secured over the diaphragm 118 ofthe pressure regulator 100, and an intercommunicating pipe 120 connectsbetween the casing 108 of the pressure regulator 101 and the casing 117of the pressure regulator 100. In the assembly of parts shown in Fig. 5,the pressure in the casing 117 may be built up gradually from minimum tomaximum so as to produce a gradual increase in the pressure existing inthe outlet chamber 122 of the pressure regulator 100 and in the pipe 80which is carried from the outlet chamber 122 and connected to the piping73. The operation of this automatic-mechanism will be understood fromthe following description: Let it be assumed that the intercommunicatingpipe 120 is closed and the interior of the casing 108 is open toatmospheric pressure. Then. the spring 110 may be compressed by thescrew 111 to such an extent that a pressure of say 300 pounds will bemaintained in the outlet chamber 114 and in the pipe 115'. By openingthe needle valve device

